Established facts

In his doom-laden polemic about the Church of England (“Drowning in its own irrelevance”, November) Martyn Percy makes a fundamental error. The establishment of the Church is not an archaism but a living thing that continues to evolve, both in its service to the nation and its self-understanding.

Bishops in the House of Lords speak frequently, and often forcefully, for those on the margins—whether it’s the impact of the Universal Credit twochild limit, the treatment of refugees and prisoners or human rights abuses at home and abroad. My own work in the House focuses on gambling reform and getting justice for the victims of the cladding scandal. This service in parliament is enabled by our constitution and informed both by our faith and the experiences of people in our parishes and other networks further afield.

Questions about establishment and the future of the lords spiritual are for parliament. But I detect no great enthusiasm for abolition. And other denominations and faiths find in our role a reassurance that faith and belief are taken seriously in our shared public life.

For my part, and that of my colleagues in the Lords, our interest is less in “clinging to the privilege and power of the past” than speaking truth to power in the present—and serving those most in need. Alan Smith, bishop of St Albans and convenor of the lords spiritual